A popular, much circulated picture of freedom fighter Bhagat Singh in a yellow turban is based on a 1975 painting. In reality, the revolutionary, who was only 23 when he was hanged on March 23, 1931, never wore a yellow turban, say historians.
In fact, said historian Chaman Lal, there are only four known photographs of Bhagat Singh — as a child and then as a student at Lahore's National College in a white turban, in police custody in Lahore where he is seen with open hair sitting on a cot, and a fourth with trimmed hair and hat.
The yellow turban picture has gained more traction with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) prominently displaying it in several offices. While party chief Arvind Kerjriwal has been photographed with Dalit icon B.R. Ambedkar and Bhagat Singh in the frame, its new chief minister in Punjab, Bhagwant Mann, has said pictures of the two will be prominently displayed in State government offices.
